Let's not act like Sproles is putting up all world numbers or anything. Good stats but he's in the same situation as bush, being used primarily as a weapon more than a consistent runner.

Yeah I kind of was thinking this as well, it's not like Sproles has really done anything special, in fact his numbers are pretty damn similar to Bush's first couple of seasons before the injuries really took over and derailed him.

If anything Sproles is showing this year that the role that Bush played was limiting from an overall and stat perspective but did allow them both to make plays. Bush had some nice plays for the Saints, he just couldn't get any kind of consistency going.

He's definitely playing better but its because he's finally adjusting his style and running downhill.

To say his lack of success had anything to do with NO is a complete falsehood. Your completely ignoring how injury prone and fumble prone he was in New Orleans.

And Darren Sproles success in NO really shows how much of a bust Bush was. Bush should have atleast been able to do what Sproles is doing. He was actually in the perfect situation, he got to play in a dome on an explosive offense where defenses couldn't key on him and he could be used in a variety of ways. But he just didn't understand breaking tackles or running forwards.

And you are ignoring that he got hurt on punt returns and that turf probably played a part of him getting hurt. He's said himself how much better he likes playing on natural grass, and how much better his body feels because of it. It's a combination of him learning how to better succeed (crazy how some times players develop in the NFL), and the situation he's in.

New Orleans basically used Bush to open space for their receiving corps, they never used him as the focal point of their offense because they preferred Brees throwing the ball down field. Sproles was a great sining by NO, he filled Bush's role more than adequately and Brees hasn't lost a step with him in their backfield.
In Miami, he is the focal point and he is healthy and together we can all see the results.

So I was looking at the numbers and Bush is currently 12th in the league in rushing yards with 973. Matt Forte has 24 more yards than him but 9 more attempts. MJD has ~400 yards more than him but 100 more attempts. Lesean McCoy has ~300 more yards than bush with 60 more attempts.

He's quietly having a top ten rb season. His numbers are comparable this season to Fred Jackson and AP. And few primary RBs have had better seasons than him. ie: Demarco Murray

Yeah I kind of was thinking this as well, it's not like Sproles has really done anything special, in fact his numbers are pretty damn similar to Bush's first couple of seasons before the injuries really took over and derailed him.

If anything Sproles is showing this year that the role that Bush played was limiting from an overall and stat perspective but did allow them both to make plays. Bush had some nice plays for the Saints, he just couldn't get any kind of consistency going.

Sproles has 13 plays of 20+ yards from scrimmage (not counting returns) this year, Bush has had 10.

Sproles IMO is clearly the better player for that role. But Saints-Tigers has been proven correct in his assertion (over many years) that Bush was never a true "satellite" player in the first place. He showed flashes of learning to press the hole and manipulate second and third level defenders late in his NO career (just couldn't stay healthy), so he really just needed carries in a more traditional offense and some good luck with health.

I think he needs to be thrown the ball downfield more. Something they don't do, and the Saints never did. Even with Sproles now, it's all in the backfield, or right at the line, which works great, but let him use his speed/size/athleticism as a pure wideout from time to time, really mix things up.

Reggie has nice hands, but one thing that really made him special as a prospect was how natural he looked as a wideout.

I think he needs to be thrown the ball downfield more. Something they don't do, and the Saints never did. Even with Sproles now, it's all in the backfield, or right at the line, which works great, but let him use his speed/size/athleticism as a pure wideout from time to time, really mix things up.

Reggie has nice hands, but one thing that really made him special as a prospect was how natural he looked as a wideout.

The Bills did this a lot early in the season with Spiller and Fred Jackson when they were both healthy after the Bills got hit with a few injuries to their wide receivers. It actually worked really well because they could get defenses in their base 4-3 or 3-4 packages and then spread out 5-wide when the defense assumed they were going to a split or single-back set and manipulate them that way.

They're probably the only team I've seen do it often and have it work often. I think the Raiders could pull it off very well with McFadden and Reese both being capable of playing as quality wide receivers for any team in the league if they wanted to switch positions.